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Emily Caruso Parnell, and her children, Ari, 3, and Mara, 7 months, at the Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue in Sudbury. Emily is president of the board of the synagogue. JOHN LAPPA/THE SUDBURY STAR/QMI AGENCY

When I moved to Sudbury from Toronto a year ago, I knew that, as a Jew, it would take some adjusting to go from being one of nearly 180,000 Toronto Jews to one of just a few hundred. president of Sudbury's Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue, said.

"It's very challenging to accommodate all those differences in practice and differences in belief within one tent. It's got to be a pretty big tent."

However, I never expected finding fresh bagels would be

impossible and inquiring about the existence of matzah

(unleavened bread eaten by Jews during Passover each

year), would be met by blank stares and "did you mean mozzarella?"

It wasn't always this way.

When Sudbury's first Jewish settler arrived in the late 1800s, and others followed in the years after, a Jewish presence was quickly established in the downtown area by way of a number of thriving businesses and a bustling social life in the then tight-knit community.

These days, much of the community is fractured and the synagogue, the Jewish house of prayer, has only 25 active families. Getting supplies for Jewish holidays usually means making a trip to Toronto or Montreal. A few of Sudbury's Jewish residents -- long and short term ones -- point to a lack of interest from younger Jews and the difficulty in trying to appeal to people with different levels of religious commitment as reasons for the dwindling interest.

"Imagine that one church had to hold everyone ... from the United Church to the Greek Orthodox and everything in between, and they all had to share a building. That's sort of the spectrum we're looking at," Emily Caruso-Parnell, president of Sudbury's Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue,

said.

"It's very challenging to accommodate all those differences

in practice and differences in belief within one tent. It's got to be a pretty big tent.

PRESENT DAY SITUATION

The change in Sudbury's Jewish composition is seen clearly at the John Street synagogue, where in the last five or so years the way Judaism is practised has changed.

"(The synagogue is) more of a combination of Conservative and Reform," said Scott Goldstein, a Laurentian University student who sits on the Shaar Hashomayim board.

"It used to be more of a Conservative and Orthodox mixture, but now it has moved towards the Conservative Egalitarian type of practice ... This is because of changes in the population. Some of the more traditional people have ... moved away."

Conservative Judaism is a modern stream of Judaism, and means that Jews attempt to conserve Jewish tradition, whereas Reform Judaism is a progressive movement that believes in integrating Jewish tradition and non-Jewish insights. Orthodox Judaism, on the other hand, is the most traditional of the three.

Some of Sudbury's Jewish residents said that apathy has played a big part in the changing face of the community.

"(Sudbury's Jewish population has) dwindled," said Judi Cartman, who moved to Sudbury in 1970, and was born in a concentration camp in 1946. "When we moved here, there were 70 some-odd families, active families that really participated (in the synagogue).

"I find that a lot of the younger people today, (Judaism) doesn't mean as much to them. It's a problem bringing people to the different faith groups and keeping them.

"It's not as important to them as it was when we were growing up and it was a centre for being with your own kind."

Vivian Field, who came to Sudbury with her husband in 1960, said when they arrived, there was a strong sense of optimism about the future of the Jewish community.

"When I came in 1960, there were approximately 50 or 60 families. At that time the university was just getting going, and the anticipation was that with the advent of that, the community would swell to 100 (families). At that time a new synagogue was built, which is the one that's still being used, and over time the community has dwindled.

"The community has dwindled and dwindled, and as with any religious organization ... younger people today are not committed as they were even when my kids were young. The membership has dwindled drastically. We're able to hang onto the synagogue because there were many families before and there were wise investments made, but we have very few people (now) who are financially supporting the synagogue."

Those still involved in Jewish life in Sudbury, Field added, struggle to find common ground.

"It's a very disparate community. We come from all over, and because there are three or four branches of Judaism as to the way people worship, sometimes it's very difficult. The synagogue here was originally considered to be an Orthodox synagogue, which meant that the women sat separate from the men and all sorts of other things, but you can't sustain that anymore."

According to the 2001 census, there are 200 Jewish people living in Sudbury.

ANTI-SEMITISM

While anti-Semitism does, and has, reared its head in the past in Sudbury, most say it isn't a common occurrence.

"In my experiences here it hasn't been a problem," said Caruso-Parnell. "There are periodically things that crop up, someone (draws) a swastika on something. We have a good relationship with the police, which we use to deal with that and we also have a very good relationship with the other religious communities in the city ... that really is preventative as far as avoiding some of those tensions."

In an interview with the Ontario Jewish Archives a few years ago, Judy Feld-Carr, who was raised in Sudbury, said that attending a Catholic school, she was on the receiving end of a lot of anti-

Semitism, describing one time where she had some of her teeth knocked out by her classmates.

Last year, Daniel Benzimra, the president of Laurentian's Jewish Student Association, told The Star he was finding swastikas drawn or carved on bathroom walls. Staff Sgt. Al Asumma said at the time there were two incidents reported in January 2010, and one in January 2011.

When Field's oldest son was in high school, she said, a boy threw rocks at their window and told his friend he was going Jew hunting.

Cartman, who sits on the Greater Sudbury Police's race relations board, said "there are problems.

"There's problems at the university. I know that there are. I hear it at my board meetings. It's something we've been working really, really hard to be proactive about so that nothing really bad happens.

"The (police) go to the university and go to the schools and teach about diversity and respect of other faiths. I used to go to all the high schools in town ... and I would speak about our faith," said Cartman.

According to Donna Bernardo-Ceriz, assistant archivist with the Ontario Jewish Archives, the number of Jews in Sudbury has remained pretty steady over a long period of time.

In 1921, 129 Jews called Sudbury home. In 1941, that number jumped to 239 and dropped slightly in 1953 to 222 people. In 1971, it increased again to 230 people. The most recent numbers available are from 2001, when 200 Jewish people resided in Sudbury.

In 1921, Jews represented 1.5% of the population. By 1971, Sudbury had grown so much that that number dropped to 0.3%.

FIRST SETTLERS

Dan Rothschild was the first

Jew to arrive in Sudbury, around 1883. He made a living by selling merchandise from a pack sack to local labourers. His brother, Max Rothschild, arrived a year later.

Aaron Silverman came to Sudbury from Poland in 1889, when he was 18. He sold clothes to workers at construction camps along the railroad line, and by 1892 was able to rent a small shack on Elm Street to run his business.

David and Lewis Jacobs, Harry Endelman, Abraham Weisman and Hyman Ironstone were also among the first Jewish settlers to the Sudbury region.

Vivian Field, who has lived in Sudbury for 54 years, was Hyman Ironstone's granddaughter.

Ironstone was among the earliest settlers in Cache Bay, in the West Nippissing area. He moved to Sudbury with his family around 1906.

"He was what they called a peddler," Field said. "He travelled ... to all these little towns like Wahnipitae and sold dry goods. He then established a menswear store in Sudbury (in 1896, Ironstone Men's Wear), which my two oldest uncles ran for years on end."

These earlier settlers were soon firmly entrenched in Sudbury society, with businesses and homes on Elm, Elgin, Cedar and Spruce streets, among others.

BUSINESS COMMUNITY

Aaron Silverman's small shack on Elm Street eventually became Silverman's Department Store, the first department store in Sudbury. It was located at 67 Elm St., which now houses Querney's Office Plus.

Dan Rothschild ran a general store, D. Rothschild and Company, on the corner of Elgin and Cedar streets. His brother, Max Rothschild, had a butcher shop next door.

Abraham Weisman opened a store on Elgin Street in 1898, selling chocolate, ice cream and cigarettes.

In 1907, Hascal Moses, who managed the Rothschild store in Wahnapitae when he first came to Northern Ontario, built a newsstand, which later became Wolfe's Bookstore. It was located in what was then the Moses Block, at Elgin and Durham Streets. In 1930, he took over the Sudbury Hotel at Elgin and Van Horne streets, and ran it until 1949. Today, the Ledo Hotel sits in its place.

Jack Leve was a fur trader who spent much of his time travelling by dog sled, particularly in the James Bay area. In the 1940s, he put down roots in

Sudbury, setting up an office above Wolfe's Bookstore.

SOCIAL LIFE

For a time, Jewish life in Sudbury was bustling. The Dorothy Rothschild chapter of Hadassah, a women's volunteer organization, was started in 1928. Teas that were held by the chapter were enormously popular, attracting even those outside the Jewish community.

In 1917, the Women's Auxiliary was established. Thirteen of the Jewish community's most prominent women were on the executive. Rose Ironstone, Hyman Ironstone's wife, was the first president.

The group ran annual Chanukah and Purim parties, as well as dances and picnics. All the proceeds from the activities went to a number of different causes and charities, including supporting the local shul. Donations were also made to the Red Cross, the Ukrainian Orphan's Fund, and many other organizations. Local Jews in need were also supported.

In June 1987, the largest social event involving the Jewish community was held, and it attracted people from all over Canada. It was the 75th anniversary of Shaar

Hashomayim. Judy Cartman and Mitchell Spiegel co-chaired the event. More than 200 people came, some who had moved away from Sudbury as long as 60 years ago.

Nowadays, said Caruso-Parnell, the social scene is very different.

"Everything you (want done), you have to do yourself, and we have to do within our little community ... It's certainly more challenging in that way. There isn't the support system (there was in the past)."

CURRENT CHALLENGES

When asked about challenges faced these days by Sudbury's dwindling Jewish community, everything from preparing for holidays to keeping Kosher (eating foods that conform to the regulations of Jewish law), to keeping the community united and having access to Jewish education, was mentioned.

"Compared to being Jewish in Toronto, it's definitely challenging," said Caruso-Parnell. "Finding food, we keep Kosher, so that's challenging. Continuing to maintain traditions and keep holidays when there isn't any public infrastructure within which to do that (is also tough). There aren't big Chanukah parties organized or a big Jewish community centre, for instance. You have to do everything yourself."

"It can be difficult in terms of education," said Scott Goldstein. "I teach the Hebrew school on Sundays, but somebody who's looking for a more inclusive and comprehensive Jewish education for their children, that can be a difficult thing to achieve here in Sudbury."

"There's a big diverse community, and there's people who want to be Reform, there's people who want to be Humanist. There's not enough of us to be able to do that and work together, as hard as we try," Cartman said.

"It used to be (close). Not anymore. I find it really hard. You try to do something together and you almost split in two, three and four. It's just not a really good feeling."